Being a Driver with Caversham Good Neighbours

This is vital practical help we can offer to members of our community in Caversham.

Some disabled have friends they can call on to give them lifts to appointments or help them get shopping, but many don't. And in the case of the elderly, perhaps they have outlived most of the people they know.

This presents them with a major challenge. Ambulance services are limited and taxis are very expensive, if you're on the kind of income many are managing on. Plus the fact that taxis can't always offer the attention needed by a person with limited mobility.

So, as a driver, you will be offering a true lifeline to someone in need. It's an activity you can tailor exactly to your own living pattern. You make yourself available as often as you feel you can - once a month, once a week or whatever. And the lifts are usually local. Quite simply, someone in the office will ring you from time to time and, giving a few days' notice, ask if you can make a specific trip. You are free to say - there's absolutely no pressure to accept.

You can claim motor expenses of up to the HMRC prevailing rate (currently 45p per mile) and we ask that you check with your insurers that it's OK to use your car for giving lifts in this way at no profit.

The people we give lifts to have often led interesting lives and talking to them can be a treat in itself. We ask them to make a small donation for each trip and their gratitude for what we do is a real reward.